In a new open-access paper, I examine the impact of public intellectuals arguing for action in the climate debate, noting key differences across different major discourses and schools of thought (summarized in table above.) Here is the citation and abstract: Nisbet, M.C. (2014). Disruptive Ideas: Public Intellectuals and their Arguments for Action on Climate Change. Wiley...

Effectively engaging the American public on climate change—including its causes, impacts, and solutions—remains both a major research question and a communication challenge. Effective public engagement requires understanding the cognitive, affective, and behavioral nature of audiences. On the Monday, Sept. 10 2012 edition of NPR’s All Things Considered, Richard Harris reported on the findings of a...

–Reposted from Big Think. A November Pew survey reveals a slight upward shift in public belief in climate change. A number of factors likely account for the rise in belief but the most parsimonious explanation remains a recovering economy, marked by hopeful signs of a U.S. unemployment rate below 9% for the first time since 2009....

Post by Sarah Merritt, American University doctoral student. Reposted from Big Think. News attention to climate change appears to follow a narrative cycle, where according to communication researchers Katherine McComas and James Shanahan (1999), rather than reflecting the objective conditions of the issue, coverage will follow closely the issue’s dramatic qualities including claims related to...

A new study finds that Fox News tends to feature guests who doubt the reality of climate change and stories that dismiss the need for action, while CNN and MSNBC tend to feature guests who assert the reality of climate change and the need for action. Interestingly, however, Fox tends to devote more attention to...

Public opinion about climate change, observes the New York Times’ Andrew Revkin, can be compared to “waves in a shallow pan,” easily tipped with “a lot of sloshing but not a lot of depth.” In a recently published chapter in the Oxford Handbook of Climate Change and Society, I review research that provides several explanations...

Most scientists in the US and UK blame public ignorance of science for flawed policy preferences and political choices. They tend to be critical of media coverage, yet rate favorably their own experience with the media. Scientists say policy-makers and journalists are the most important groups to engage and view the public as having secondary...

The September issue of the American Journal of Public Health is now available online featuring 8 studies and articles by an interdisciplinary set of experts, each examining the health risks posed by peak petroleum and what can be done to mitigate and protect against the onset of a major spike in energy prices. The special...

A strong majority of Americans say it is likely that oil prices will triple in the coming five years and that such a tripling would be harmful both to the economy and to public health. Conservatives and those dismissive of climate change are among the most concerned by the threat of a major spike in...